Hi all, since the anni update I've been unable to print PDF from InDesign. It doesn't matter if I set PDF to default printer or use the 'Microsoft to PDF' print option; what I get is: "Printing Error: The Adobe Print Engine has failed to output your data due to an unknown problem". Occasionally it will print just under half of a 60 page document and that's it - it fails (but I do get a PDF of that half...). Sometimes it just goes straight to the error.

Hi Barbara, thanks for the suggestion but my problem isn't export PDF it's print PDF - i.e. I want to print a version for proof reading (so I use the multiple InDesign pages on single PDF pages option).

I can export it with no problems which will be great when I send it to the print shop.

Thanks for the clarification. It sounds like an incompatibility with the new operating system. But since I'm using a different OS, I can't confirm that. Have you tried printing to a PostScript file and then distilling to PDF.

There are known issues with the latest version of Windows 10 (the so-called “anniversary update”) and printing from Acrobat and Reader to certain printer drivers (not standard PostScript drivers, though). It has nothing to do whatsoever with the contents of the PDF file itself.

Adobe is working with Microsoft to isolate the source of the problem in Windows.

Generally speaking, suffering from “reinstallzheimers disease” doesn't fix anything. If you really believe that somehow the installation of Acrobat got corrupted (which generally would not account for the symptoms described above), use the Help=>Repair Installation option of Acrobat. That validates that all modules and registry entries are kosher and takes a hell of a lot less time and effort.

It's worth noting that print PDF works in other programmes (such as Word and PS) and only suffers in InDesign. It wa also working fine before the update. It also prints 27 pages of the document fine and then when I do another print (from pp 28 to 60) it fails immediately. I'm going to try a print from pp 30 to 60 to see what happens. Thanks for all suggestions but it would be great to see Adobe actually get a fix for this - I don't want to use a free pdf programme when I'm paying for the suite to work seamlessly.

The PDF coming from distillation of PostScript is of much lower quality than that obtained by direct export of PDF (no stink'in PostScript involved). The distillation of PostScript method kills transparency, removes color management, and can yield PDF files that are not searchable and much more difficult to apply Acrobat edit fixups to.

Adobe most strongly recommends export PDF over any other method of PDF creation from InDesign!!!

Hi Dov, thanks for the reply. As mentioned earlier in this thread, I use export when I want to send it to the print-shop. However, at this stage, I am wanting to create a proof that is reduced file size and allows me to put all 60 pages of the document into a spread of seven pages by using the print option of 3x3 thumbnails per page. This gives me a manageable file to send to multiple people to proof the document and, at this stage, output of hi-quality is not needed.

However, I appear to have solved my problem:

As mentioned, the document would print 1-27 of a 60 page document (print all, failed at page 28).

The document wouldn't print the range 27-60 when I tried that afterwards.

The document would print the range 30-60.

Therefore the problem lay in the pages 27-28. I got rid of the pdf linked artwork from both pages and tried a print - it worked; so, obviously my problem lay in one of the pdf documents that was linked to either page 27 or 28. Turns out that when I opened the original linked PDF (sent to me as a PDF artwork from another company as an advert) from page 28 in PS, PS automatically rasterized the image, I saved it to a different location, re-linked in InDesign and, guess what - it worked. I got the print that I requested that had previously failed.

So, it all boiled down to a single linked PDF artwork that needed rasterization...